A place of stories and everyday living on the Gaspe Coast. I am a storyteller, a writer and a great listener. I will use this site to share some of the wisdom that I have learned on my own life's journey through the insightful art of storytelling, music, beauty and folklore of this amazing place.

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Sunday, July 7, 2013

A Day at the Beach

On this beautiful Sunday in July, take the time to run away to the beach. Forget your troubles and play like a child, full of carefree wonder and laughter.

I remember a few years ago I heard a story about an older woman I knew who had been diagnosed with some serious health problems. She had always been a lady that loved to laugh, yet like all of us she had lived a life of ups and downs. She was in her seventies and I admired her because she was so creative and energetic.

One day when her daughter was visiting, they went to one of her favourite brooks from her childhood. She removed her shoes and walked into the water, like she had so often done when she was a little girl out to take in as much fun as possible. I am sure that her heart filled up with joy that day and her old body no longer felt the pain and worry of the disease that was slowly taking her energy and time on this earth.

She passed away several months later but she left me a valuable lesson. When I think of her I imagine her walking in the brook and laughing. I can almost hear her voice saying... " get in here." She reminds me that I have to take advantage of the precious days of my life. Like my mother used to say... time waits for no one.

Today I ask you to find a place to be a child again. Laugh and let go of the person you think that have to be... go play in the water!

Each
morning when I open my eyes I say to myself: I, not events, have the
power to make me happy or unhappy today. I can choose which it shall be.
Yesterday is dead, tomorrow hasn't arrived yet. I have just one day,
today, and I'm going to be happy in it."

- Groucho Marx, was an American comedian and film star famed as a master of wit

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About Me

My name is Mary, I am a woman and I have a story, just like all of you.

From an early age I was an observer and a storyteller who had a wonderful imagination.I enjoyed listening to others because I had a need to figure out their stories and wanted to understand them. Growing up, life happened... the days of my life turned into the pages of, what seemed, at times an unbelievable story.

I tried to handle each challenge with all the kindness and understanding that I could find within me, as each new scar settled into my broken innocence.

Now, I realize that each player who became a part of my life was living through their own dramatic story. Each being and acting the only way they knew how, according to the narrative they believed about themselves.

On July 22, 2013 my beautiful 25 year old daughter was operated for a brain tumor. It brought back the memories of losing my father to the same operation years ago. They took her in for her surgical procedure on a Sunday night. By 3 a.m. on Monday morning, after almost eight hours, it was over. We still did not know the details except that she was alive and that she responded to a few question when they woke her up minutes after the operation.

On Tuesday morning, the day after her surgery, the man who had been in my life for the past six years took his own life; it was surreal and impossible to believe. Inside, I was shattered but my daughter needed me and I knew that despite all the pain she was in, losing him would bring her more. At that moment I knew it was time to change my story.

I stepped back from the busyness of "normal" life, bowed my head and surrendered to the storm I was lost in. It was the most difficult challenge I had ever experienced and I knew that no one was coming to save me. No one could make it all better... .

My dream has always been to be a writer. I've longed to write about the lives of women from a personal and understanding perspective. I'm not a great writer... actually, far from it. I know I will never be a Jane Austin, nor an Emily Bronte; that is not the reason I write. My hope is that I can use my education, life experiences and story to encourage other women. My mother, who was my role model, always used to say that, "there are better days ahead". I believed her and have used those words throughout my life as a means of moving forward, despite the challenges that seemingly tried to block me.

As a student of the Simply Women Accredited Training Institute, I have the honor of working with the visionary empowerment coach and teacher Crystal Andrus, who is the head of a unique world wide women's empowerment educational movement.